Devil of the Violin
by Saint Cross
Summary: The last time Tsuzuki and Hisoka took the case of: The Devil's Trill, they missed an important object. Hijiri's violin. Something dwells within the wooden instrument. Something Angelic and Demonic. Something that the entire Ministry knows...
1. Chapter 1

Prologue:

"_Here you go, Hijiri."A tall and thin man said as he held out an old and cheap violin to the small boy standing in front of him. The violin was neatly carved down to the deepest and precious piece of wood. Two large forte signs were carved and burned black on either side of the carved out hole in the middle of the wooden instrument. A happy and proud smile was upon his lips and his tone was the kindest of voices._

"_You're giving this to me, father?" the boy asked with a surprised gasp. He gratefully took the small violin and held it like it was about to break and it was up to him to keep it still and in pieces. Hijiri examined it with the lightest touch from his fingers, wanting to know every inch of the violin after first site. His eyes gleamed with excitement, wanting to master it. But one eye refused to be surprised. His left eye. It was barely fogged over but it looked like the fog would soon fully take it._

"_Yes, you deserve it." His father patted his head and ruffled the dark brown hair into a bundle before leaving him out in the backyard to stare at the old yet new violin._

_Hijiri's right eye kept a close watch on the violin while the other one just lingered without emotion or movement. But his left eye had picked up something that the right one could not. It was bundled up words that looked like a knife had scared deep into the wood. "What's this?" he asked and traced his finger lightly over it. The words were in a different language and unable to read. "Father?" he asked, thinking he was still there. But he wasn't. He turned around to look at him but only found that he was not there. The playful breeze began to howl as it picked up and cut against his small form. The howl seemed to get louder. Could that possibly be the wind? No, it couldn't be. It was too loud . . . too demonic. He turned around and there stood a man. Holding his new violin._

"_I believe this is mine." The dark and large man said to him. He was dressed in black and it looked as though his skin was bleached red. Horns grew from his forehead and one draped over his right eye while the other stood straight up. His left eye was green and cat like from the way a black scratch ran down the middle of it. A tail laid limp between the creature's legs and his long and dark ebony hair covered up his entire face. Everything but his eye. He chuckled as he brought the violin up to starting position. He began to play the most beautiful song that Hijiri had ever heard. He recognized the tune as: "The Devil's Trill Sonata" by Giuseppe Tartini. As the song got closer to the end, it was harshly played. The strings sounded as though they were on edge to breaking._

"_No, stop!" the boy cried as he fell to his knees. He clutched his ears tightly to try and block out the beautiful sonata that had turned deadly. His left eye began to throb horribly. It felt as though it was bleeding inside out. He looked back up and saw that the devilish violin theft had lost his left eye. Hijiri had lost his own left eye as well. His eye poured out blood from the hole in his head. "Stop playing!" he cried out as tears leaked from his normal eye while tears of blood leaked out of the other._

"_Not until your soul belongs to me." The man shouted as he played harder. The quick and taloned fingers made some of the strings rip and curl up back to the top of the violin._

"Stop it now!" Hijiri screamed as he was jerked away from his sleep and back to reality. He clutched his left eye that was dishing out as much pain as possible. He pulled back to check for blood. Luckily, he found nothing but his own skin. He looked over at the violin. Not his violin. The one Kazusa gave to him. Tatsuya Otonashi's violin. But he was dead and it no longer belonged to him. His own violin had burned in the fire along with the band room and many other violins that belonged to his friends. He scooted from his bed and walked out the door to the bathroom. Hijiri had passed out while playing that violin and didn't take a bath. He reached up and wiped his forehead with the sleeve of his navy blue school uniform. He walked out into it and started up the water warm to where he liked it.

_What and who was that? _Hijiri asked himself as he began to unbutton his shirt. He tugged off the school uniform from his body then placed them to the side where they would be later washed.

_I don't get it . . . _he said in the back of his mind and stepped into the shower. The hot droplets of water splashed him from head to toe. The steam built up from the hot water and fogged up his body and hid it in the mist. _I just blacked out. And that dream . . . _he rubbed his forehead with a deep sigh. _That was a night mare._ The pain in his eye had cooled down once he had gotten into the warm water.

Once the older Hijiri had finished cleaning up. He stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel. He started to dry his wet and nude body off. He looked into the mirror and scanned himself over through the fogged up glass. His fingers ran along the mirror to wipe away the layer of transformed water. His dark brown hair was plastered to his face and shoulders. His cat like left eye was the first thing he saw. "That's it!" he shouted in a surprised way. "The 'Devil's Trill' is my solo to play at my concert!"

**Chapter 1: Tsuzuki's Return**

"_**Here comes the rain again, falling from the stars. Drenched in my pain again, becoming who we are as memory rests. But never forgets who we are."**_

_**Wake Me Up When September Ends; Green Day**_

It had been one month since Hijiri Minase's concert and a couple of weeks after his eye had been replaced back to his old one. His eye still throbbed with pain and he believed that sometimes in his sleep, his old demonic eye had returned. But he couldn't tell because his blind eye was becoming more blind with each day passing. He had hummed his piece, "The Devil's Trill Sonata" many times after that day.

"Ah! Why don't you ever stop humming that song? Sure, it's beautiful and all, but doesn't it get a little boring?" Minase's fried–Yamashita asked.

"Dunno . . . I like it, I guess." He rubbed the back of his head and chuckled nervously. Ever since Tsuzuki had left, he had hummed that song over and over again. It was like a drug that he could never get rid of. "Well, here's my stop, Yamashita. See you tomorrow!" Hijiri said with a carefree smile and a wave. He walked back into his room as he got into his house.

When he got into his room, he noticed something strange. His violin–the one that used to belong to Otonashi–was in a different spot than where he left it.

"How did this get here?" it was laid out on the bed, fitting perfectly in the sheets. It had white and fluffy feathers neatly placed around it.

"Hello, Hijiri." Tsuzuki's voice called out from the side of the room.

"Tsuzuki!" Hijiri screamed with joy at just the sound of his voice. His head jerked in the direction of his friends words, only to find nothing. "Tsuzuki?" he started to walk over into the nothingness. Maybe he really was there and it was just his blind eye fooling him.

"Where are you going?" Tsuzuki's friendly voice boomed out again. But this time, it was really him. He came up behind him and pressed his body close to the boy's back. His arms went about Hijiri's neck. The man's blue eyes sparkled with joy. His dark blue hair fell over his eyes while some hair tangled with Hijiri's.

"No where. I'm staying right here." He smiled and leaned back against him. "Why have you come back?" he asked and took a glance up at him, hopping he came on his own accord rather than for business.

"The violin . . . there's something on it. We haven't decided what it is exactly . . . your eye . . . " his eyes widened at the look of the devoured green eye. The Guardian of Death touched the eye's eyelid gently. The second he touched it, voices went through his head.

_I believe this belongs to me . . . _

_Not until your soul is mine . . . _

Tsuzuki quickly jerked back and brought his hand to his forehead. He knew that awful voice from somewhere. But whose was it . . . ? He tried to remember but all his memories seemed blocked off.

"Something wrong, Tsuzuki?" Hijiri asked. He looked over at him with a worried glance.

Tsuzuki quickly retreated his hand back to his side. "No, nothing's wrong." His voice was small, almost frightened. But he kept a straight face regardless to his worried tone. "Everything's fine."

"If you say so." Hijiri walked over to the bed and picked up the violin, handing it Tsuzuki's way. "Here, I can no longer play it without my left eye anyway." His voice was a whisper, like he was holding back something. Whatever he was holding back, it wasn't happiness.

"Thank you, Hijiri." His fingers reached out for the violin. The closer he got, the louder the voice became.

_Not until your soul belongs to me . . . _

_Until it's mine . . . _

Tsuzuki's hand once again withdrew back to his side. His head began to hurt badly. It was as if the words were being carved into his brain. That voice . . .

"Tsuzuki?" the boy spoke up again and tried to hand it to him once more but only failed to get him to take it.

"Keep it Hijiri." The Shinigami's eyes were speechless with fear.

"All right . . . " Hijiri laid down the violin back at its resting place on the bed. "Do you need a place to stay? You're welcome to stay here if needed." He said, turning back to Tsuzuki.

Tsuzuki froze for a split instant. Hijiri's fogged eye looked as though it had changed back to the cat like one that he got rid of. No, it couldn't be. He shook his head and allowed the thought and eye to return to normal. "No, I'm fine. Hisoka and I are staying at the Kyushu Sector." A sudden idea struck through his head. What if he asked Hijiri to come and stay over in Kyushu instead? Then he could get the violin without touching it! Yes! Then he would have it and won't even have to lay a finger on it. "You could come stay there with us while we're looking at the violin."

"Oh! Great idea!" Hijiri said with a cheerful smile. He would be able to see his friends once more. "Take the violin with you. We're gonna need it."

"Right." The violinist said with a nod and scooped up the wooden instrument into his hands. Unaware at what rested in a deep slumber inside of it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Voices Inside the Brain**

"_**But I know just what it feels like to have a voice in the back of my head. Like a face that I hold inside, a face that awakes when I close my eyes. A face that watches every time I lie, a face that laughs every time I fall."**_

_**Papercut; Linkin Park**_

"Hello again, Hijiri." The brown-haired, teal-eyed empath said with a small smile as Hijiri and the others entered the Judgement Bureau. Within it, is the Summons Department whose charge it is to retrieve any lost souls still wandering the mortal world. Beyond the Judgement Bureau, is the Ministry of Hades, where the judges judge the sins of the dead.

"Hey, Hisoka!" Hijiri shouted and rushed up to him. "Where's Kazusa?" he looked around for the little girl. Kazusa Otonashi was Tatsuya Otonashi's daughter. She had died in an attempt to save Hijiri's life. A column in the court room of the Bureau collapsed when Tsuzuki went out of control and almost fell onto Hijiri, but Kazusa pushed him out of the way. If it wasn't for her, Hijiri would be dead.

"She's back at the Kyushu Sector." Hisoka told him. His gaze was pried from Hijiri to Tsuzuki. The pale and almost dead expression on his face made him ask, "Something wrong?"

Tsuzuki's eyes quickly met Hisoka's right after the question. A nervous smile peered on his lips. "No . . . I'm fine."

"You sure? 'Cause you're sweating." The young empath pointed out. "And your fear and confusion have skyrocketed."

The Shinigami had to wipe his forehead just to see if Hisoka was messing around with him again or not. Surprisingly, Hisoka wasn't just kidding around and he was sweating a lot.

_Am I sure I'm fine?_

"I'm good. I just need to lie down and I'll be back to normal in no time." He rubbed his forehead one more time and massaged his temples to calm himself.

"Welcome back Tsuzuki. I'm sure I can sleep tonight knowing you retrieved the violin for studies, yes?" a voice called from behind them. It was their chief operative–Konoe. The old man was wearing the regular business outfit that everyone in the Bureau wore, but he wore a disappointed frown–even before Tsuzuki could answer. "And you got some Manjuu for me as well, didn't you?"

"Yes . . . and no." He pushed Hijiri up to him, not daring to touch the violin himself. "I _did_ get you the violin. But I forgot about the Manjuu." Tsuzuki's last sentence came out slurred so that his boss could barely hear each word separately.

"Thank Hades that you didn't screw this one up. Tatsumi–come take the violin and tell the Gushoshin to analyze the thing from head to toe for any strange markings." And with that order, the chief's assistant–Ichiro Tatsumi came out from his hiding spot in the Bureau and took the violin from him. Tatsumi was a clean-cut man who took care of the papers and sending information back and forth to Chief Konoe.

"Yes, Chief Konoe." Tatsumi said as he walked back in, cradling the violin in his arms so as not to drop it.

_Not until your soul is mine . . . _

Tatsumi stopped dead in his tracks. "Who's there?" he asked curiously. He looked around for a second. Ichiro did not have fear what-so-ever, but the sound of that deep and emotionless voice ran chills up his spine.

_Give it to me!_

His face cringed up. Who was talking to him? No one was around and that voice was too close to be from far away. He just shook his head and kept walking. For some reason, Ichiro was starting to freak out. He began to remember now. That voice . . .

"Do you need something?" one of the two Gushoshin birds asked and appeared in front of him. The Gushin Gods were small birds that wore cloaks and boots along with a big baggy hat to top it all off. They were responsible for tallying the good and bad deeds in an individual's life.

"Oh, yes." He held out the violin to the small bird with a dead half smile. "Could you look this violin over for me? We're looking for any odd markings. Once you get the results, please send them back to the Chief."

"Nota problem." The Gushoshin took the violin then bounded off with it in its hands. With the two birds studying the violin, there was no possible way that they could miss a thing. After all, they were the best of the best.

"Hello, Kazusa!" Hijiri shouted as he rushed up to the little girl and his savior with open arms. She was waiting outside of the home they housed at while in Kyushu on missions.

"Hijiri!" she called back and raced toward him. Her Beautiful white dress fluttered gracefully behind her feet as she ran.

As Kazusa jumped into his arms and he picked her up off her feet, her arms went about his neck, dragging him into a hug. "I've missed you, Hijiri!" she shouted happily.

"I've missed you too." He smiled to her and brushed her golden hair back to look at her happy face.

"Hijiri," a familiar hand touched his shoulder. He took a glance back at the hand's possessor and saw Tsuzuki. "Can I talk with you for a second?"

"Yeah, sure." He nodded and sat Kazusa back down to her feet. The violinist tapped her head and told her to stay put while he talked with the Shinigami. "What is it Tsuzuki?"

"That's it! That's my question. What _is_ it?" Tsuzuki placed his hands on the boy's shoulders and met him eye-to-eye with a serious look. "What lives in the violin?"

"What are you talking about? There is nothing in that violin." Hijiri snapped quickly. He had owned that violin for quite sometime now and knew that there was absolutely nothing dwelling in the hallow wood of this instrument.

"I heard voices." The Guardian of Death explained to him about the voice that he knew but could not name and how it talked to him every time he touched it and what it would say.

"I haven't heard any of these 'voices ' that you're talking about." Hijiri patted his shoulder in an attempt to make him feel the least bit better. "Let's wait until we get the results back and see what the Gushoshin find out about it. Then we'll pick up from there." He smiled and walked up to Kazusa. He took her hand and lead her inside.

"There's something in there . . . " he lowered his head and started to walk back into the house with Hisoka following shortly behind him.

An hour later had passed until and everyone was sitting in the living room. They were laid out upon the couches and many chairs that sat in the living room. Everyone was just happy that there was a break that was longer than thirty minutes. But groans escaped many lips when Hisoka came in, waving around a piece of computer paper. "The results are here." Hisoka said as he walked into the living room where they were all gathered. He sat down on the couch next to Tsuzuki and began to read:

"Dear Tsuzuki and the others:

The violin that Hijiri possesses was a 'one night' made violin and carved out of Angelic and Demonic wood. On one side, there are markings in an odd language. We haven't been able to tell what it says because it is in some old language that our computers cannot read. It may be the same language as the carvers of the violin–Angelic and Demonic. Through our reports, there was only one who was on both sides. That was Lucifer. When we tried to look into his files, they were all gone–as if they were erased. We'll know more later. But that's all for now.

Gushoshin Gods"

_Lucifer . . . _Tsuzuki thought to himself. "Excuse me . . . " his voice was dead as he spoke. "I need some thinking to do." And with that said, Tsuzuki was gone and out of the room.

"Hmm . . . " Hisoka placed his chin on his palm and rested his elbow on his knee. He looked as though he was in deep thought. _He's hiding something. _


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: The Monster Within**

"_**Can you feel it crush you? Does it seem to bring the worst in you out? There's no running away from these things that hold you down. Do they seem to complicate you because they make you feel like this? Of all the colors that you've shine, this is surely not your best."**_

_**Colors; Crossfade**_

Tsuzuki sat on the bed, staring into the darkness in front of him. The moonlight cascaded down through the open window and struck his pale face. He rubbed his forehead like he always did when he was frustrated.

_Lucifer . . . what are you doing back? Revenge?_

He considered the thought but then shook his head. Lucifer was not one to consider killing. But he was kicked out for his brutal actions of torture before a kill. A rule of the Ministry was that a Shinigami would give the humans a quick and painless death if needed. Lucifer on the other hand, decided against this foolish rule.

Tsuzuki closed his eyes to block out his thoughts.

_Your soul is mine . . . _

_Surrender it to me . . . _

That awful voice returned and filled his mind in the worst ways possible. It tortured and burned his head mind. Just like Lucifer would torture and burn humans . . .

_You belong to me . . . _

_MINE!_

"Go away!" he cried and tossed in the bed. He clenched and wrinkled the white sheets in his fists. "Just leave me be . . . " he gave out a small whimper. He held his head in his hands. The voice just laughed as he continued to throw his body about the sheets in the most agonizing way.

Back at the Bureau, they were having their own problems . . .

"What?" Chief Konoe shouted. He slammed his fist down on the table causing the mountain of papers to fall off the table and come tumbling down into a million pieces.

"We've been hearing a tune called: 'A Night on Bald Mountain' being played down in the Lost and Found Item's Department . . . " Tatsumi said to him. He looked like he had been running by the way he was huffing and puffing out air.

"Then get down there and check it out, dammit!" he yelled in his face and pointed his index finger to the open door.

Tatsumi bowed and started back out the door. When he got closer and closer to the Lost and Found Item's Department, the beautiful yet frightening song grew louder and louder. He opened the door and stepped in. The violin was up in midair playing all by itself.

"Show yourself." The Chief's assistant called to the invisible violinist. He pulled out a paper fuda charm and tossed it forward. It caught in the air and small lightening shocks suddenly burst in and out of it. A dark voice chanted a few words and the fuda fell back to the ground. It crumbled and burned into ash.

"So you caught me . . . " as the form came out of its hiding place in the darkness, the moonlight struck the body. Long blond hair sprayed out in front of the form that was clothed in a snow-white toga. Glistening golden eyes appeared out of the sun yellow locks. Out of the man's back came the wings of an angel. But this was no angel. This was a devil.

Tatsumi gasped knowing this fiendish devil without a doubt. "Lucifer!" beads of sweat coated his forehead in a thick layer. He stepped back just slightly to keep himself from falling over.

"How have you been, Tatsumi?" he slowly started to advance toward him. Once he had him up to the wall, he pressed his body close.

"Never been better since you've been gone." Tatsumi spat honestly. He wiggled in Lucifer's grip but it was no use. The angel was too strong for him to fight against.

"Oh, how rude." The Angel said in a disgusted tone. He moved to take off Tatsumi's glasses. The glasses carelessly slipped from the smooth fingers. He picked up his barefoot and slammed it down on them. The glass shattered into a billion pieces under his feet. Blood dripped from the sole of his foot, but he didn't seem to mind. "I missed you and the Bureau dearly . . . but I haven't forgotten what you did to me . . . locked me in that godforsaken violin."

"You deserved it." He squinted his eyes and tried to pick out where Lucifer was through the blur in front of him. "Every bit of it. You deserved to rot in your own little Hell that you created."

"Now, now . . . " he tapped his nose then ran his finger up the arch and to his forehead. "You aren't in the position to say things like that." A demonic chuckle escaped the soft angelic lips. "Tell me where I can find Tsuzuki."

"May you suffer an eternity in damned nation." Tatsumi continued to spit out threats just as easily as keeping calm.

A frown formed on Lucifer's lips, but then the little grin returned to them just as soon as he had lost it. "I guess I'll just have to read your mind . . . " he closed his sparkling golden eyes and pushed his fingers deeper into the skin on his forehead. "Kyushu Sector, eh?"

"No!" he struggled harder now. He felt his body fall to the floor for unknown reasons and Lucifer's body warmth disappear in the darkness. Only a white feather remained where Lucifer stood. It fluttered into Tatsumi's lap and laid perfectly in it. Lucifer left leaving that one feather and saying, "May you suffer an eternity in your own damned nation, along with the entire Bureau. Send my greetings to the Chief."

Tsuzuki had found a way to block out all the laughing and other sounds away from his mind. He had passed out on the bed just a few minutes past midnight. His body was completely laid out upon the bed. The covers went around his waist and covered only one leg. He had left the window open so that the cool breeze would come in and keep his body just at the right temperature.

Out of no where, a loud thump filled the room. Tsuzuki felt himself being pulled from his sleep, but he did not move an inch. Until he felt a light hand on his shoulder. He jumped a little then eased up.

"Tsuzuki . . . " that voice called to him. But he had blocked it out from his mind! Where could it possibly be coming from? The Guardian of Death shrugged the hand from his shoulder. He thought that it was Hisoka's or Hijiri's hand.

"Go away." He demanded. He was tired and managed to get to sleep once and didn't want to try again. Doing a simple task such as that was a little difficult to him now with that voice stalking his mind.

"Now, Tsuzuki. Don't you want to see your old partner and how he's doing?" the voice returned with those words. The hand had been withdrawn from the bedside and back to wherever it had belonged to at the start.

Now, Tsuzuki was interested. Maybe this really was his partner and not the voice. "Lucifer . . . ?" he asked. His eyes jerked open just as fast as he turned over in excitement. There, in front of his bedside, was his old partner. He had to reach over and touch him to make sure he wasn't dreaming or just imagining him up as a wild fantasy.

"Hello, Tsuzuki." He smiled down at him. He took Tsuzuki's hand as it reached out for him. The angel kissed the back of it lovingly. "You know, an angel kiss leads to a freckle." He smiled sweetly and allowed his gaze from the palm to Tsuzuki's eyes.

"That may be true if you _were_ an angel." Tsuzuki returned the smile with one of his own.

"If I _was_?" he chuckled and crawled his way into the Shinigami's bed. He laid next to him and snuggled into the sheets that smelt strongly of his old partner. "I think I am."

"You're neither angel nor demon. So I don't think kisses will work for you." He sat up in the bed and looked down at him. "How did you get back here?"

"Simple," one golden eye peeked over the sheets as he spoke. "The violin sucks souls as the possessor plays. You know that. With enough soul energy, I restored my own soul using the soul power of those human fools."

"Oh?" he said with an interested look. "Now here's the real question," he moved around in the bed so that his face was close to Lucifer's. "Why have you come back?" his voice was calm and barely a whisper.

"Well . . . " Lucifer turned to Tsuzuki and made one of his wings wrap about him. It forced his body down to the bed and pulled him close. Lucifer knew every place where their bodies touched. "I want you to join me . . . turn against the Bureau." His voice was tempting and smooth. A hand reached up to Tsuzuki's face and ran its fingers gently down his frustrated expressions. Two fingers massaged his temples right after that. Lucifer was determined to get what he wanted. Determined to get Tsuzuki.

_You belong to me . . . _

"No . . . " Tsuzuki shook his head. Sweat began to build up around his forehead. He started to pant and his body became more heated. He had no idea how Lucifer could possibly be doing this to him. He felt warm and almost tempting puffs of air being blown into his ear.

"Mine . . . " the angel said in a tempting manor. His elongated fangs found their way to Tsuzuki's neck. He scraped the tips of them along the smooth surface of his fragile skin.

"Tsuzuki!" someone called behind the door. Before the two long lost partners knew it, the door flung open. Hisoka was the cause of it. The site of the angel and killer on his partner made him gasp. "Lucifer!"

Lucifer's head quickly snapped to look to the intruder. He snarled at him and pulled back but refused to get off of him. "Leave us be!" his eyes flashed dangerously as he spoke. Not a second later, Hisoka had been sent flying back into the wall. The door slammed close and locked tightly behind him.

"Now, my dear Tsuzuki . . . " he moved his lips to Tsuzuki's and kissed his chapped lips lightly with his smooth ones. "My moonlight is running thin. I must take my leave." It took everything in him just to pull himself off of the Shinigami. He looked back at him. His eyes locked onto the beautiful Guardian. Tsuzuki's pale skin seemed to glow with the moon light casting down in the room. His agonizing expression was hard to turn away from. The luscious velvet irises gleamed in the most violent of ways. "I missed those eyes. They're the eyes of a killer, you know?" he spread out his giant bird-like wings. A few of the fluffy, ivory feathers fluttered about the room. "I want you to make your decision by the next time I stop by." He bounded up onto the window rail. Right before he took flight, he blew Tsuzuki a butterfly kiss. Within seconds, Lucifer was out of site and into the darkness.

Tsuzuki kept quite for a long moment after the angel had left. "Lucifer . . . " was the first word that broke the silence into more than a million pieces.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Dreaming of Past

"_**My inner slumber, streams of reflections, veils of impressions, misty diffusion. Transparent visions, the center of me."**_

_**Dreams of Reality; Myraid**_

"Tsuzuki! Are you all right?" was the first thing that Tsuzuki heard as he awoke. His eyes fluttered open and he saw Hijiri's face.

"Yeah . . . " he sat up and rubbed his forehead. A deep sigh escaped his lips to calm himself. "I'm fine."

When he smelt the strong scent of fresh and blooming cherry blossoms, he knew where he was. Not back in Kyushu, but at the Bureau. A strong burn grew upon every piece of skin that Lucifer had touched. Especially his lips. He looked over to Hisoka. "How did you know to come after me?"

Hisoka shrugged and crossed his arms, bringing them tight to his chest. "Your emotions made it hard for me not to come after you." He noticed Tsuzuki trying to sit up. He lightly put his hand on his chest and forced him back down onto the sheets. "No, you've got to rest."

"I burn . . . everywhere . . . why?" a groan moved out of his lips. "It's like I'm on fire . . . "

"I don't know exactly. But, you've got red hand prints all over your body. Mostly around your chest." He looked down at him, eyeing him cautiously. "Why were you associating with him?"

"He . . . Lucifer was one of my old partners. We were . . . very close . . . he decided one day that he was going to torture our victims before death. He'd burn their skin until it rotted. He told me he'd kill me if I told. And because I cared for him, I kept it secret. He moved his torturing to me . . . I eventually went mad and blacked out. I tortured him just as he did me and eventually killed him. Somehow, he moved what was left of his soul into the violin he loved to play."

"Did you know that he was still in the violin?" Hijiri asked. He had an interested look as Tsuzuki told his story. It was nothing like the stories he had been told as a little kid.

"No, I thought he was dead." He rubbed his head in frustration. How could he not have realized this before?

"We're ready for Hijiri." Tatsumi said as he stepped in. He hadn't spoken anything at all about the night with Lucifer. He had the same type of burn on his face that Tsuzuki had on his chest.

"Ready for him?" the Shinigami looked over at Tatsumi with a confused look. He had been asleep so he had been missing out on a lot of things that went on.

"Yes." Hisoka took a seat next to his bedside. "Hijiri is going to be taken to the Dream Chamber where they are going to pick out every dream he has had from the day he had the contract cornea put into his eye to see if there are any clues to decrypting the 'Angel and Demon talk' on the violin." Hisoka watched as Hijiri took his leave from the room. Tsuzuki sat back up but was pushed back down just as easily. "You get to stay here until they get finished."

"Lay back." Tatsumi ordered to Hijiri. They were inside a room where everything was white. The walls, the furniture, everything. Tatsumi had got Hijiri to lie down on a bed and cuffed his arms and legs down with metal cuffs. He pressed his eyelids closed using his fingertips and strapped a headband around his eyes.

Hijiri felt a nervous break down coming up. The cold cuffs on his wrists and ankles made shivers run up and down his spine. The cold metal seemed to burn his skin. With the bandana on his eyes, he could not see what they were going to do to him.

"Just relax and everything else will happen for you." Tatsumi whispered to him. The last thing Hijiri heard from the Chief's assistant was the loud and growing faint _click clack click clack _of his shoes and marble flour.

"Dream Chambers monitors on." Was the final drifting noise he heard before being taken into the darkness.

"Let's see . . . " Watari said. Watari was head of the Kinki sector. The blond-headed man specialized in electronics and had been wanting to try out this machine for quite a while now. The 'Dream Chamber' basically scanned a human's brain through the left and right eyes and rewound dreams. The room outside of the 'Dream Chamber' was called 'The Seeing Room' where they could monitor the dreams and dream patterns. That was where Watari and the others stood.

"_Here you go Hijiri." _They heard a voice appeared as they rewound it.

"Woah-woah. Stop there." Watari commanded. The person in charge of the rewinding hit 'STOP' and then 'PLAY'. They watched the dream of Hijiri's father giving him the violin and the violin being taken and played by the demon. Watari hit pause when Hijiri's eyes caught the signature. "There it is." Watari looked over both eyes. The good one came first because they could see it better with no luck though.

As they examined the left and foggy eye, Watari noticed something. "Zoom in on the left eye." He squinted hid eyes and moved his face closer to the screen. He fixed his glasses up on the arch of his nose. "Ah-ha! That's it! There it is!" he pressed his index finger to the clouded up screen. "His left eye must have had some demonic traces in it and was able to decode the words." He cleared his throat and began to read, "In this violin, is a soul. A soul of dark, pure, and evil. This soul it sucks souls of the pure until it is able to revive and reappear. Until this violin is broken and tortured just as the soul does to others, the soul shall roam free just as the dark, pure, and evil desires."

"Broken and tortured, eh?" the Chief said, scratching his chin in a thinking manor. "That's easy enough. I'll get the violin and allow Tsuzuki to take care of it."

"Right. I'll get Hijiri awake again and inform them all of our situation."

As the Chief entered the Lost and Found Item's Department, he heard that familiar tune of 'A Night on Bald Mountain' being played like a broken record. The violin had been up in the air when Tatsumi had came in. This time, it was different. The angel in white had returned to play on his violin.

"Lucifer . . . " Chief Konoe spoke the name as if it was a curse word. His disgusted tone made Lucifer turn around and glared.

"Chief Konoe . . . How long has it been? Thirty-five? Forty years?" he lowed the horse strings bow and violin and placed them both neatly on the red velvet fabric they were laid out on.

"Way too long for this old one to remember." He spoke truthfully to him. One hand reached to his back pocket to pull out a fuda, but Lucifer caught him doing so.

"Way too long and you're still the old bastard I remembered." He raised up his hand to his face which made the old man flinch. "Old people's skin is so much easier to burn. That takes the fun out of everything." The door slammed hard behind Konoe. Everything went pitch black and silent. Except the faint tapping noise of Lucifer's advancing feet.

_Tap tap tap . . . _

It was only a matter of seconds before the Chief felt something soft like baby fingers wrap around his wrist.

"What the Hell?" Konoe asked.

Before he knew it, he was violently jerked into a tight hold. He was up lifted off the ground and into the air with that same thing tightly holding onto him.

"Shall we be going? The day light is passing and you know what tonight is?" Lucifer smiled to himself.

"The night of the blood moon . . . " Konoe gasped. His eyes widened. Tonight was the one night in every thousand years that a red moon came out. The Vampire Moon . . .

"My dear Tsuzuki will be in full bloom tonight . . . I'll assure you that."

_Tsuzuki..._


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: To Lose Something Precious**

"_**I thought if I showed you I could fly, wouldn't need anyone by my side. Now I'm running backwards. With broken wings I know I'll die. I'm running blind."**_

_**Running Blind; Godsmack**_

"Chief Konoe! We heard–" Watari called as he slammed open the door–only to find the Chief gone. He looked down and saw a small feather. But this one wasn't white. Instead, it was black. "Where could he have gone off to?"

"I know . . . " Tsuzuki spoke up. "I know exactly where he and Lucifer went off to." He picked up the feather and twirled it in his hand. "But I want everyone to stay here . . . this is my fight and mine alone."

"But-" Hijiri started to protest but was quickly cut off.

"No, Hijiri. This isn't between you, me, Hisoka, Watari, and Lucifer. It's just between me and Lucifer." Tsuzuki stood back up and started to walk out, but he was quickly caught by Watari's hand pulling on his shoulder.

"No. We're going to help."

Tsuzuki looked back at him with his blood thirsty eyes then shrugged his hand off. "I said I don't need you." He hissed him and walked out of the room and soon the Bureau. He pounced in the air and flew off. He flew and looked around for the tall Tokyo Tower because he knew that it was the place that Lucifer was going to be. And he was right.

"Now, Chief. You will witness the fall of your Tsuzuki." He grinned and ran a finger down his face, burning his skin. He had Konoe tied up to the pole with a tight wire that could be bent like string.

"Lucifer." He heard Tsuzuki call out to him. Lucifer smiled as he turned around. His wings had changed. They were now black instead of white and his eyes had changed from golden to blood red.

"Welcome, Tsuzuki." He tucked his raven like wings behind his back. "I've been waiting for you."

"Well, here I am." His feet landed on the cold cement top of the Tokyo Tower. "Why here, Lucifer?"

"Don't you remember?" he kept his cunning smile. His feet carried him toward Tsuzuki. Toward his partner. "This was the place that you and I first met and the place that we first shared a night with each other."

"I remember well." His face went dark in the yellow sunset. It seemed to make him look demonic. Like he wasn't Tsuzuki anymore, but someone else. The cool breeze tossed his hair to the side and tickled his nose. The fresh scent of blood filled the air and he knew where it came from. Lucifer. "You've been on a killing spree?"

"I was getting ready before a fight. Preparing for you if you didn't join was important because then, I would have to kill you." The angel circled him and looked him over as he did so. He stopped behind him and allowed his wings to overlap Tsuzuki's body once more. He turned to face him in the opposite direction of the rising blood red moon. "Look, Tsuzuki. The moon brings out the vampire in each of us. Stained in blood, the vampire rages on. Until the day he himself is devoured. The Red Moon rules all, right?"

Tsuzuki gasped and looked up at the rising red moon. He seemed memorized by the gorgeous look of it. It was high in the sky panted with yellow, orange, and crimson. But then a sudden heat filled his entire body. His heart began to pound hard.

_Thump thump thump . . . _

He could feel it hard in his chest and throat. His veins felt like they were bleeding and on fire. His pupil became very tiny, almost as if it wasn't there. Somewhere within that blue iris, was a growing pupil. He bit down hard on his bottom lip as fangs began to appear.

"That's right Tsuzuki . . . " he watched him as he transformed within his arms. "You're a vampire. A blood thirsty demon. Just like me . . . "

_I have a vampire . . . inside me._ He gave off a deep growl and a bright light filled him. It was so bright that Lucifer had to let go of him to shield his eyes.

As Lucifer brought down his arm to see Tsuzuki, a growing grin appeared on his lips. Tsuzuki's darker side–his vampire had arisen. His eyes were blood shot with red and his pupil looked as though it wasn't even there. Two long fangs overlapped his bottom lip and black talons formed on the tips of his fingers. "How beautiful . . . "

Tsuzuki looked up, panting hard. His breathing rate had increased after wasting so much energy on the transformation. That energy was regained through his demon side.

"This is your first feed . . . " he pointed to the Chief with a grin. "Have all the fun you like with him."

Tsuzuki grinned devilishly. He sluggishly walked over to the old man, taking raspy breaths.

"Tsuzuki! Snap out of it!" he cried. It was no use. The demonic side of Tsuzuki tilted his head back forcefully to reveal his bare and pale neck.

"You're right . . . old people's blood taste like shit anyway." He turned to Lucifer with a grin. "Your blood will please my whistle greatly, Angel." He laughed and left the old man to be but not without cutting at his neck first.

"You want to feast upon my blood?" Lucifer stood still and showed no fear in his eyes. He waited until Tsuzuki was close enough to run a finger down his cheek. It burnt it horribly and deeper than any other burn he had given anyone.

"Yes . . . " the new Shinigami seemed to not show any signs of pain from the burn. He reached over and tilted his head so that he could reach his neck. The vampire opened his lips to allow his fangs to dig into the gentle flesh.

Before he could go any further, lightening shocks circled around them. They quickly looked over and saw Hisoka chanting a spell. Not just any spell. A paralyzation spell.

"Quick! Hijiri!" Watari shouted to his friend standing next to him. Hijiri was holding the violin and a lighter in his hand. "If the scriptures on the violin are true that when the violin is broken and tortured the way the possessor does to others, you will die when Hijiri breaks and burns the violin."

"No . . . " Lucifer pulled back and glowered at them. With a demonic growl, he dashed forward with his arms stretched outwards to reach for the violin.

But, Hijiri had already bashed the violin to the ground and threw the lit lighter down into the crumpled pieces. Lucifer had missed and ended up burning his hand in the process of trying to scoop up the violin.

"May you burn in Hell." Watari said. He looked down at him with fire in his eyes for all the things he had done to the Ministry, tortured victims, and even Tsuzuki.

"My violin . . . " Lucifer spoke as though he was clearly fine. His red eyes were widened to their fullest. It was until then did they realize that his eyes weren't widened because he was dying. They were widened because he lost his violin . . .

"What . . . ?" Hijiri asked. He stepped back a little because he was afraid that the vampire would strike him first. He was the one who burned the violin after all.

"You broke my favorite violin, you little bastard." The demonic angel snarled, bearing his ivory fangs and stood up. He quickly clenched the boy's neck and dug his fingers deep into it. It burned deep cuts into him. It was as if he was trying to burn his neck in two.

A larger body quickly knocked Hijiri out of his grip and him onto the ground. "I want your blood . . . " the person howled and pressed his lips to the back of his neck. Lucifer bucked his hips up to him and knocked the large body from his own easily.

"Tsuzuki?" Hisoka asked. He knew what was going on when he saw his nails, fangs, and heard his blood thirsty words. He had taken the transformation of the vampire. His eyes darted from Tsuzuki to the moon. The Red Moon! He quickly pulled out a basic fuda and tossed it in the air. This paper fuda created a large electric orb. This one was large enough to block out the moon's rays from Tsuzuki for the time being. But the thing was that it took energy to keep up.

The old Tsuzuki had returned to normal with another glow. He shook his head as he stood back to his feet. "What happened?" he asked as he looked around. He knew right off the bat what had happened when he saw the burnt violin, Hijiri chocking, and the orb in the sky.

"Tsuzuki!" Watari called to him. His voice was shaky and showing his fright greatly. "We burnt the violin and broke it but it didn't work!"

"You actually believed that crap?" Lucifer broke out into laughter. He too had returned to the normal state with white wings and golden eyes. "The violin isn't apart of me. You fools!"

_Isn't apart of him . . . ?_ Those words shot through Tsuzuki's head. Wait! He remembered Lucifer talking about how he was made. Made out of the souls of others! If he took one soul away, he would send Lucifer back to the violin. Without a violin, he had no where to go and his soul would wander down to Hell where it belonged. But where was he going to find a still living soul . . . ?

"Hijiri!" he shouted. He ran up to him and grasped his arm harshly. He pulled him away and jumped off of the roof of the Tokyo Tower and flew with him in his arms. "Hisoka, Watari! Keep him busy! I've got a plan." Were the last words they heard from Tsuzuki before turning to the angel and preparing for the worst.

"Listen, Hijiri . . . I know this sounds a little awkward but you have to . . . to die." Tsuzuki's words came out soft and gentle. He was trying to keep calm as much as the others. His words only made Hijiri scream and struggle in his arms. "We have to destroy your soul in order to destroy Lucifer!"

"But I don't want to die!" Hijiri screamed and slammed his hands to Tsuzuki's chest. "I want to LIVE!" tears started to leak from his eyes. He knew this was not a 'yes' or 'no' decision. This one went one way. Yes.

"You have to, Hijiri! I'm going to give you a quick and painless death . . . okay?" he raised his voice now. He was almost yelling at the already frightened boy. He took a deep breath and let it all out in one puff of air. "I'm sorry. But you have to understand."

"I do . . . but why me?" he pressed his face into Tsuzuki's chest and sobbed. He allowed his tears to flow faster as he felt the Guardian of Death against him. He was happy to see him, but his day had turned out to be a nightmare.

"You are the only soul left alive that is apart of Lucifer." His feet touched the grass. They had reached the Hall of Candles. It was located on the outskirts of Purgatory. It is the house of records of every human life. He pressed the teary-eyed boy close to his chest. "I'll bring you back as soon as I can. I promise." He whispered those comforting words to him and Hijiri nodded. Tsuzuki slammed the door open and rushed in. He had to make this as quick as possible for Hisoka and Watari's sake.

"It's quite rude to barge in like that." A voice boomed out around the hallow and open room. Billions of candles were lit up and it was so bright, it was almost blinding. "Oh-Tsuzuki!" he sounded interested now. Down the stairs, came a floating half mask and pair of white gloves. It was clearly shown that this 'count' was invisible. "And you've brought a human?"

"Count. I need to put out a life." Tsuzuki said in his usual calm tone. He kept calm so as not to get on the count's bad side. His look was serious. Shadows flicked over his face which made him look more crucial.

"This boy's? Hijiri Minase's?" he ran a finger down Tsuzuki's face and tilted his chin up so that he could get a good look at those eyes–the eyes of a killer that he adored so much.

"Yes." His voice took a sudden change. It was full of guilt. It sounded as if he had already killed Hijiri.

"Very well. Follow me then." He turned around and waved to him as a signal that he wanted Tsuzuki to follow him out. Tsuzuki obeyed and started to walk back behind him. They walked stairs upon stairs with candles upon every step. Some of the flames stood tall while others were slowly fading and some even flickering and trying to hold on for life. "Here it is." He said and pointed to a lonesome candle in the corner of the room. The candlelight burned tall regardless to its loneliness.

Tsuzuki looked at the dancing flame and nodded. He sat Hijiri back to his feet and stroked his hair back. He wiped the tears away from his cheeks and kissed them away from his eyes. "Remember my promise."

The violinist nodded and watched Tsuzuki lean over to candle. He cupped the flame around his fingers and drew a deep breath. Hijiri clenched his eyes closed tightly. His heart pounded fast in his chest. He wasn't ready to stand in the line of death. With one breath from Tsuzuki, Hijiri was passed out on the ground . . . dead.

A solitary tear escaped Tsuzuki's eye. He felt sorry that he took life from someone who wanted to live. He would live up to his word and help Hijiri back to the living. "Keep him here until I say otherwise." His tone was angry for some reason. He was angry at himself for killing one of his friends. But he had no other choice. He left the room and the mansion without another word.

"You're so weak . . . " Lucifer said as he slapped Watari down and kicked him hard in the ribs. Both Watari and Hisoka were down on the ground, bleeding terribly. Watari had no way to defend himself without fuda so he could only sit there and watch as he got the beating of his life. As for Hisoka, he couldn't waste energy on Lucifer. He had to keep up the electric ball for Tsuzuki's sake.

"We may be weak but Tsuzuki's going to take care of you . . . " Watari spat up some blood as he spoke his words. His hand was gripping his side tightly in his fists. By the way he was bleeding from his mouth, he knew that a few of his ribs had broken.

"Tsuzuki is in no position to-" a mouthful of blood spilled out from his mouth. The angel fell to his knees and started to cough up some more, gagging up as much blood as he could get in one round. "What . . . ? What's happening?" he felt his giant wings break off of his back. They fell to the side of him then got back up with a new possessor. This new owner took the form of a transparent Hijiri. Lucifer's eyes shot open in surprise. "An angel . . . ?" he asked. The angel just smiled sweetly to him and touched his cheek. He bent over and kissed his forehead. Blood tears dripped from his eyes before they closed. He fell to the ground with a smile upon his lips. He felt his life passing slowly away until his heart and all his body functions gave out on him.

_Tsuzuki . . . there is a vampire in us all . . . but that kiss was not from the vampire. But from me . . . _


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: To Relive and Start a New Beginning

"_**Someone told me, love would all save us. But how could that be? Look what love gave us. A world full of killing, and blood-spilling. That world never came."**_

_**Hero; Nickelback**_

Tsuzuki had returned to the death site within minutes. He stood in front of Lucifer for the longest moment and kept completely silent. It hurt too badly to cry. He had killed two people that he loved in one night. How could he possibly forgive himself for this?

Hisoka lowered the fuda as he saw the dark clouds began to coat the Vampire's Moon. The empath wiped the trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve and got back onto his feet. He walked over to Watari and helped him back up and allowed him to use his body as support. Watari was the one who had taken the most hits after throwing all those threats at Lucifer to keep him away from Hisoka.

"Is it over . . . ?" Watari asked. His voice was rugged and it was almost hard to tell what he was saying. He looked up at Hisoka with his blood-covered face. His eyes asked the same exact question.

"Yes." Hisoka said simply. He scooped Watari in his arms and bounded down from the Tokyo Tower with him, leaving Tsuzuki there in peace. "It's safe once again."

Tsuzuki touched Lucifer's cold cheek and pushed a shock of hair away from his face so that he could lay a gentle kiss on his forehead. "May you rest in eternity of a dream that we never woke up from." He reached up to his own neck and jerked off a chain necklace with a cross on it. He sat it down next to his dead partner and left. Not looking back for anything.

At the end of that day, he returned to the Hall of Candles to speak with the count and keeper of lives.

"So you want to bring the boy back after you killed him?" the invisible count asked him. He looked down at Tsuzuki whose face had gone rock hard. It looked as though he was about to break out into tears. "You know what you're going to have to face, right?"

"Yes. And I'll take full responsibility for my actions." The Shinigami kept his head down. The count had never seen such a down Tsuzuki in his life.

"Then you know I'll be asking a favor of you, won't you?" he said playfully. One arm went about his waist and he pulled him close. "I want you to cry for me."

"Cry?" he asked. His eyes quickly moved to look at him. They were already forming water that would soon become tears within seconds.

"Yes. Even the strongest people should cry every now and then. It'll only make you weaker if you don't let your pain out." The invisible man reached over and stroked his hair back. He pressed Tsuzuki's head into his chest, allowing the Guardian of Death to let his tears loose. "That's right." He spoke softly. He heard him give out a sob. He started to rock back and forth, holding him close.

Tsuzuki cried for about an hour then pulled away from the count. He rid his face of the tears he had shed and smiled back up to him in return for his kindness. "Thank you."

"Not a problem." He stroked his cheek then guided him back up the stairs and the candle that sat all alone in the corner of the room on the fourth floor. Hijiri's candle. He reached back in his pocket and pulled out a special lighter that ran on water from the river of Styx and with one flick from the while with his thumb, the flame in the lighter lit up. He barely taped the half-burnt wick and it lit a flame taller than any other flame had burned. "That wasn't really what I wanted you to do, you know. But it was worth it. I'll collect my real prize tonight." He said playfully and turned to walk out. Tsuzuki felt a little too playful hand grab his butt as the nobleman passed him. It made his back straighten up in an instant.

"Tsuzuki!" he heard Hijiri's familiar voice call out to him from behind.

"Hijiri . . . " Tsuzuki's voice was joyful and carefree as he said his name. The sound of Hijiri's voice gave him a little more happiness. He turned around to see the boy once more, back from the dead. "I told you I'd keep my promise."

"I knew you would." He rushed up and rubbed his face into his chest.

"How was Heaven?" he asked, brushing back the newly reborn Hijiri's hair with his fingers.

"No better than here." Hijiri said honestly. "But the odd thing is . . . " he looked up to him and pointed to the used-to-be fogged up eye. It was crystal clear now! Tsuzuki could see the beautiful dark green in them. "I can see now."

"That's great!" the Shinigami smiled with a blissful laugh. He was cheering up already.

As the sun went down, Tsuzuki had gone to visit the lake before paying of his debt to the grabby nobleman. He watched the normal sun go up and the normal moon replaced it. The moon wasn't red. But it was full and bright as can be tonight. He could hear the gentle waves of the ocean beating up against the sand and the hum of the playful breeze dragging it to the shore. He pulled out a piece of paper out of his cloak and looked at it. It was a photograph of Tsuzuki and Lucifer. They were smiling and having the time of their lives at a restaurant. He let go of the picture and allowed the wind to grab hold of it and take it for him.

_What happened? _He looked down and noticed something odd on his hand. It was a freckle from where Lucifer had kissed his hand the other night. He smiled a little then shoved his hand into his pocket. _Guess you really were an angel . . . _

"Tsuzuki." He heard Hisoka say. He felt the boy walk behind him and stop next to him. "I'm sorry about what happened . . . " he glanced up at him with a comforting smile, trying to cheer him up the best he could.

"It's all right. I'll get over it . . . hopefully." He kept his gaze out in front of him.

"I know he was your old partner and all–but I'm your new partner." He nudged Tsuzuki's shoulder with his elbow to try and grab his attention. "You got that?" he waited for his partner's answer but didn't get one. He just shrugged and pulled something out of his pocket. "Get over it. Here." He held out the object and waited for him to take it before the boy turned to leave.

Tsuzuki took it and examined it. It was a picture of him and Hisoka and for once, they were getting along. He was ruffling Hisoka's hair while he was trying to enjoy his sweet potato. He smiled and laughed at the humorous photograph then turned around to look at Hisoka as he walked away. "Thanks. That's just what I needed." He turned back around to look up at the moon in the sky.

_The moon brings out the vampire in each of us. Stained in blood, the vampire rages on. Until the day he himself is devoured._

_Or until that vampire can find the will to live and return to the light once again._


End file.
